Michael Jensen made a name for himself in the 1970s-1990 s with his 'agency theory' and its application to questions of corporate governance and economic policy. The effects of his theory were ...acutely felt in the pedagogics of business studies, as Jensen lent his authority to combat all attempts to integrate social considerations and moral values into business education. Lately, however, Michael Jensen has come to defend quite a different approach, promoting an 'integrity theory' of management learning. Jensen now rather aspires to empower students to give authentic expression to their personal values in their professional lives, and he sees the main function of management studies in assisting them in this effort. This article reconstructs the transformation of Jensen's outlook, drawing on Jensen's theories as an exemplar of wider trends in the current literature on management learning, away from a decidedly 'mechanistic' and towards a more 'humanistic' pedagogy of management. Jensen's case serves to highlight developments that might make for better preconditions for the appreciation of business ethics on part of business students. On closer inspection, though, it appears that his remaining within a positivistic framework ultimately impedes the kind of progress Michael Jensen envisions for business studies.
Cryptocurrencies and Business Ethics Dierksmeier, Claus; Seele, Peter
Journal of business ethics,
09/2018, Letnik:
152, Številka:
1
Journal Article
Recenzirano
Cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, SETLcoin, Ether, Solar Coin, or Liberty Reserve exist since 2009. Because of their decentralized control, they are often considered a threat or alternative to the ...conventional centralized banking system. While the technological implication of some such currencies, especially of Bitcoin, has attracted much attention, so far there is little discussion about the entire field of cryptocurrencies and very little academic literature addressing its ethical significance. In this article, we thus address the impact of "blockchain technology" on the nature of financial transactions from a business ethics perspective. We begin with a survey on relevant literature from neighboring disciplines. Next, we work towards a 3 × 3 framework for current debates on the ethics of cryptocurrencies (see Table 1): we combine the micro, meso, and macro levels of business and society with assessments of the potential ethical impact of cryptocurrencies as morally beneficial, detrimental, and ambiguous. In addition, we highlight possible avenues for future research, such as the changing roles of the miners and regulators, the prosocial use of cryptocurrencies, the antisocial use for shadow banking and transactions in the 'dark net' and cryptocurrencies' effect on inflation and deflation.
In the light of growing political and religious fundamentalism, this open access book defends the idea of freedom as paramount for the attempt to find common ethical ground in the age of globality. ...The book sets out to examine as yet unexhausted ways to boost the resilience of the principle of liberalism. Critically reviewing the last 200 years of the philosophy of freedom, it revises the principle of liberty in order to revive it. It discusses many different aspects that fall under its three main topics: the metaphysics of freedom, quantitative freedom and qualitative freedom. Open societies worldwide have come under increasing pressure in the last decades. The belief that politics and markets fare best when guided by the principle of liberty presently faces multiple challenges such as terrorism, climate warming, inequality, populism, and financial crises. In the view of its critics, the idea of freedom no longer offers adequate guidance to meet these challenges and should be partially corrected or even entirely replaced by countervailing values. Against the reduction of freedom to the merely quantitative question as to how much liberties individuals call their own, this book draws attention to the qualitative concerns which and whose opportunities society should foster. It argues that, correctly understood, the idea of liberty commits us to defend as well as advance the freedom of each and every world citizen.
After Business Ethics Dierksmeier, Claus
Journal of human values,
01/2024, Letnik:
30, Številka:
1
Journal Article
Recenzirano
Odprti dostop
Lamenting the deplorable state of business ethics is, itself, a staple of the deplorable state of business ethics. But if, as its many critics claim, business ethics continuously fails to deliver on ...its promise, what could take its place in management education? After business ethics—How else can we integrate ethics into the curriculum? This article argues that an ethical grounding of business theory and corporate practice requires a critique of conventional economics, replacing the mechanistic paradigm that predominated economics over the last 200 years with a humanistic alternative.
Freedom and Sustainability Dierksmeier, Claus
Revista de Filosofía - Universidad Católica de la Santísima Concepción,
06/2024, Letnik:
23, Številka:
1
Journal Article
Recenzirano
This article examines the perceived conflict between freedom and sustainability, proposing that a qualitative understanding of freedom can integrate liberal and ecological interests. It critiques the ...notion of quantitative freedom, focused on maximizing individual choices without considering their content or purpose, for ignoring essential aspects such as the rights of future generations and ecological sustainability. In contrast, it argues that qualitative freedom, which values options based on their contribution to human autonomy and dignity, offers a more comprehensive solution. This perspective prioritizes options that promote the freedom of all, including future generations, and suggests that some restrictions may be necessary to enhance sustainable life opportunities. The conclusion asserts that qualitative freedom should precede the quantitative consideration of options, allowing sustainability policies to be viewed not as limitations on freedom but as qualitative improvements that ensure better opportunities for all, both now and in the future.
How are artificial intelligence (AI) and the strong claims made by their philosophical representatives to be understood and evaluated from a Kantian perspective? Conversely, what can we learn from AI ...and its functions about Kantian philosophy’s claims to validity? This volume focuses on various aspects, such as the self, the spirit, self-consciousness, ethics, law, and aesthetics to answer these questions.
Drop Rawls? Dierksmeier, Claus
Business ethics, the environment & responsibility (Print),
January 2022, 2022-01-00, Letnik:
31, Številka:
1
Journal Article
Recenzirano
Odprti dostop
Business ethicists disagree on whether John Rawls’s political philosophy can be applied to their questions and concerns. They concur, however, that, if warranted, such an application of his theory ...would be highly instructive for the field. This article scrutinizes that assumption. The paper examines to what extent a normative import of Rawls’s philosophy into business ethics would indeed render adequate results. Highlighting shortcomings of Rawls in regard to several pressing concerns of contemporary business ethics, the paper ponders whether, for purposes of normative guidance and conceptual orientation, Rawls’s theory can meet the expectations that its adherents foster.
Kant on Virtue Dierksmeier, Claus
Journal of business ethics,
04/2013, Letnik:
113, Številka:
4
Journal Article
Recenzirano
In business ethics journals, Kant's ethics is often portrayed as overly formalistic, devoid of substantial content, and without regard for the consequences of actions or questions of character. ...Hence, virtue ethicists ride happily to the rescue, offering to replace or complement Kant's theory with their own. Before such efforts are undertaken, however, one should recognize that Kant himself wrote a "virtue theory" (Tugendlehre), wherein he discussed the questions of character as well as the teleological nature of human action. Numerous Kant scholars argue that Kant already erected precisely the kind of integrative moral architecture that some of his modern interpreters (while aiming to supersede him) wish to construct. For business ethics, this divergence of scholarly opinion is of crucial importance. It shows first that the standard portrayals of Kant's ethics in business ethics textbooks—as rigidly deontological, narrowly individualistic, and hence unsuitable for the specific demands of corporate agency—might have to be revised. Second, discussions in the business ethics literature on stakeholder-engagement and managerial decision-making likewise stand to gain from a more nuanced picture of Kant's moral philosophy. Third, a reassessment of Kant's ethics with regard to questions of personal character and moral sentiments might also lead to a more favorable view of the relevance of his ethics for managerial practice. Last, but not least, the many current attempts to reconcile Kant's freedom-oriented philosophy with virtue theories stand to benefit considerably from a better understanding of how Kant himself conceived of one such synthesis between the formal and substantial aspects of morality. This, ultimately, could lead to an important overlapping consensus in the academic literature as to the role and relevance of virtuous conduct in business.
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